This historical noir was an absolutely stunning read! I also truly enjoyed the atmosphere in "Mexican Gothic" - this was a completely different story and held its own complications, twists, and character connections. I enjoyed the slow build-up and the tension along the journey of the story, but also how engaging it was.

Gritty storytelling of the political unrest in Mexico in the early 1970's. Political ambition, CIA, Russian forces, Communist and student rebellion is all taking place while the story is based around a 30 year old woman, Maite, who purposely doesn't want to know anything of actual news, she only wants to know what is going to happen in her next issue of a romance magazine and sees her world as a character in those magazines. When her neighbor asks her to watch her cat while she is gone for a few days, she agrees for the money she's offered, which then leads her to her adventure as the neighbor disappears. The web she gets caught in, only because she needs the money promised to her, opens her eyes to the world around her and she doesn't like it. Meanwhile the other main character, Elvis is working as a hired thug and he doesn't like this life, but he can't afford to live without it. Maite, and Elvis' worlds cross multiple times and leads to an ultimate chance for them to both to get what each wants out of life. Interesting history weaving through this story with characters easily identified with, thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read this story.

4 star. If you love the noir genre then this would be a 5 star for you. Personally, I don't love noir but I love Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s writing and I enjoyed the book in spite of the genre so that’s really saying something.

I wouldn’t say this was a “thriller” however it was filled with mystery and lots of action. The pacing was top notch and I appreciated the historical aspect. I learned a lot from reading this book.

Also, let me just say....that cover? Wow! Gorgeous! I feel it really captures the mood of the book.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for granting me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review

Silvia Moreno-Garcia does it again with this gritty and intense novel!!

This grungy historical crime fiction will have you turning the pages! Set in 19070's Mexico City and based on true events of the time. The main characters Elvis and Maite, are on a collision course to find a missing person. Maite is 30 years old, single, and working a dead-end job. She's a complicated character. Filled with angst and self-doubt, Maite is tired of boring life and looks for excitement in the pages of her romance comics until one day; excitement comes knocking on her door.
El Elvis is a young 20something, a part of the Hawks, a repressive group for the Mexican government. He is assigned different jobs from his leader, El Mago. Elvis is smart, loves words, and is always looking for new ones in the dictionary. He is intense, thoughtful, and he wants more out of life than banging people up.
This story is filled with historical references, the Mexico City streetscapes, and culture. You'll salivate at the food references, want to listen to music, and ask yourself, who the hell can be trusted?

This is completely different from the author's other books and very much a pulpy noir title. Fans of Meg Abbott will definitely enjoy this take; the ending was well earned (although I could hear a little less about Maites sad eyes) and the history it's based on is tragic and important.

This book takes place in the 1970s in Mexico City in the middle of student protests and political unrest. Maite is a 30 year old secretary who lives for Secret Romance, a romance comic book, and listening to the record collection that she can barely afford. Her neighbor Leonora asks Maite to watch her cat for a weekend and then disappears. Maite finds herself searching for Leonora and getting sucked into Leonora's secret life. Across town, Elvis, a member of a squad created to quell the protests and activists, is also tasked with finding Leonora. Elvis does not like violence or the criminal life that he is now leading. Elvis and Maite's paths cross as various factions are all trying to find Leonora and the secrets that she holds.

This is the third book that I have read from Silvia Moreno-Garcia and I like the fact that they are all very different. The other two that I read had more SFF elements and this one was historical noir. It took me a little while to get into this book as I know very little about what was happening in Mexico in the 1970s. It turns out that it isn't critical to enjoying the story but it helps get you grounded (the afterword provides more historical context).

I enjoyed getting to know these characters even if Maite's character arc wasn't completely believable (is she REALLY going to go through so much trouble for a cat?). The pacing was good--starting slow but building up over time. Very enjoyable and I'll definitely be adding this author to my "pick up whatever she writes" list.

Thanks to NetGalley for and chance to read and review this ARC of Silvia Moreno-Garcia's newest work. This was not at all what I expected given her previous novel. Mexican Gothic was filled with horror and magical realism and this book is somewhat of a 'modern historical' set in the 1970s, a crime noir, and filled with the beautiful descriptive writing we've all come expect from this author. The story was engaging and I can appreciate the broad range of writing styles. For me I felt a longing for the magical grit of Mexican Gothic, as a stand alone Velvet Was the Night will be popular, if you're going into this book with previous works on the mind you might be left disappointed.

VELVET WAS THE NIGHT is a brilliantly written thriller by Garcia set in 1970s Mexico. One thing I love about her writings is that she completely enraptures her readers with her absolutely brilliant writing and the atmospherics she gives to the readers drawing us into the story and leading us deeper on.

This is the third book I've read by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (all of very different genres). Velvet Was the Night falls somewhere between the classic and modern roman noir (more violent than many classic noirs, but with far less violence than many modern noirs).
The protagonists, Elvis and Maite, exist in proximity to each other and their stories are charged by a similar goal. There's also a character (and I was surprised which) who bridges the two worlds they seem to live in.
The protagonists in noirs are often unlikeable, and I very much felt that way about Maite, however I was rooting for Elvis and really wanted things to turn out well for him.
If you're a fan of noirs (maybe mysteries), historical fiction, and think a touch of 50s-70s music thrown in makes things better, this book it for you. If you fell in love with Mexican Gothic and haven't read (or read and didn't like) any of Silvia Moreno-Garcia's books, be aware that it's very different and you might be disapointed.

I just love Silvia Moreno-Garcia's writing style. I loved the characters, especially Maite and her romance comic obsession. I was slightly confused by some of the government aspects and the different groups, but other than that I thought it was a great story. I'm pretty sure I'd read anything that Moreno-Garcia writes. If you like historical noir style fiction that is well written with quirky characters, then you'll love this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Del Ray for the e-arc.

This was the first book I’ve read that was considered a noir. I didn’t really know what to expect, but it did not disappoint. It read like a gritty crime movie. You don’t really like any of the characters, but you still want to know what is going to happen to them. I also liked the historical fiction aspect of the book. I love books that are set against real events, especially when they are new to me.


This was my first book by Moreno-Garcia and I’m definitely interested in reading more books by her. Definitely would recommend this book. It is set to be released August 17. Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I feel like I say this for every book of hers that I review, but I love Silvia Moreno-Garcia. She hops effortlessly from genre to genre with each book and this is no exception. A gritty noir piece set in the 70s when rock-n-roll and student activism are both under siege in Mexico City. Our protagonist Maite is a shallow woman with aspirations of romance and glamour above her circumstance who gets swept up into some intrigue. The other, Elvis, is street-trash turned low level government agent, who dislikes violence and loves music. I really enjoyed the slow-simmer, low-stakes style. Felt a little like overhearing the next table overs' drama, slightly voyeuristic. Which is to say I loved it.

So I honestly had never heard of a noir book. I knew that there were noir films (which I've not seen), but for some reason, had never heard of this as a book genre. Velvet Was the Night was very intriguing. It was just the right amount of mystery and action, without being a thriller. There was a lot of time delving into the main characters and their personalities, passions, and desires so I felt attached and fulfilled. The mix of history within the noir style was something I really enjoyed as well.

I am endlessly impressed with Silvia Moreno-Garcia as an author. This is now my third book of hers, and they are so completely different in style that I feel she will always surprise me.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for granting me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed how the story came together in the end with characters overlapping and meeting again in various situations. The event itself was not something I was familiar with before reading the book so the afterword was helpful in explaining some things. The characters were easy to visualize and their story lines flowed well together. I would recommend this book in a heartbeat.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia's "Mexican Gothic" was all the rage last year and I was looking forward to reading it when "Velvet Was the Night" became available. I grabbed a copy of Velvet and soon found out it would not have the supernatural overtones that the previous novel had. I was afraid of enduring a romantic novel but I had made the commitment to read this, so....

This is a captivating story of the world of the 1970's Mexico City. The Hawks or the Dirty War sound like incredible inventions created for some action movie. Moreno-Garcia portrays characters caught up in a life I never knew of. Elvis is a Hawk, employed by the Mexican government to put down Communist agitators. Matie is a hopeless romantic whose drab life is turned upside down when drawn into a dark rebel plot. As the narrative progresses we see these two slowly being pulled together.

The suspense surrounding the politics of Mexico's Dirty War is much more enjoyable than the romantic subplot. Elvis is interesting enough, given the nature of his work versus the normal life he yearns for. Matie just seems so negative when encountering anything other than the escape of her romance comic books.

I loved reading this book for its suspense and the illumination it shed on a time and place I have been severely unaware of. These aspects make reading "Velvet Was the Night" a valuable investment. Thank you to the Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, NetGalley, and Silvia Moreno-Garcia for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a historical noir novel set in 1970's Mexico following a romance reading secretary and member or a paramilitary group used by the government to squash dissent and communism. Our secretary, Maite, gets unknowingly swept up in the action when she agrees to watch a neighbors cat and ends up being followed by Elvis. He is fascinated by Maite. The main characters remain somewhat removed from the action and frustrated me that I couldn't learn more about the government plot to squash communism. Though no fault of the author, I just don't think noir is the genre for me. I like high stakes and high drama and this is more of a smaller story. It is wonderfully told and Moreno-Garcia's writing is atmospheric and lovely. Would recommend for Noir fans or fans of the Author. A very charming story.

I very much enjoyed Velvet Was The Night. A historical noir that takes place in 1971 Mexico? Yes please! In this novel we follow Maite, a quiet, 30 year old secretary who lives life through her comics & music, and El Elvis, a member of the Hawks, a shadow group who supports the president as they battle resistance groups. The story opens with Maite agreeing to watch a neighbor’s cat. But then she goes missing and the government, resistance and the hawks all think she’s involved.

This is a slow burn, and like SGMs other books, the build creeps up on you. Thank you, Del Ray books for the NetGalley ARC in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️.5- gangsters, the search for a missing person with an object of desire, multiple perspectives. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I have personally never read this author before. I found this book difficult to keep up with and I’m not sure if it was content, writing style, or topic, but this book just wasn’t my cup of tea. I had to reread a bunch of times because I found my attention fading in and out.

I definitely liked Velvet Was the Night , just didn't love it. It's described as a noir but to me seems more like a political thriller, not saying that is bad or anything, the two main characters were okay I wish I would have seen a little more growth between them earlier in the book. The author is very talented and writes a great story, this one just fell a little short for me, the pace was a bit slow. Overall though, I would recommend this book

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review

Velvet Was the Night is a fast-faced, breath taking historical crime noir that hooked me right away. This book was lush with graphic descriptions and well developed characters and situations. While this was very different than Moreno-Garcia’s previous six novels, the writing is still exactly and unapologetically, her. I loved how among the complicated alliances and hostility, there lies a profound loneliness in each of her characters, a loneliness that propels them forward even when facing dangerous circumstances. The novel gives a glimpse into two lonely people living vastly different lives, and the potential they have to become something more together. While this was an action packed, intense political thriller, it’s also a book about two lonely hearts trying to make it - and Oh my, Maite’s evolving, changing, awakening to see the realities of her country, her journey of self discovery was fantastic. I loved the dynamic between Maite and Elvis and the time period and also that the reader got a glimpse into different perspectives. This was the first noir novel I've read and now I can say that Will pick up more!I SMG has again demonstrated her literary talent and scope.